Recommended Recordings:

Below are listed our “top 10” recommended dance CDs. Since
I couldn’t narrow them down that far, I cheated and listed our top 10 sources
(many with two or three CDs). Even so, I ended up with a dozen sources.
We hope you won’t mind the extras. We have tried to include all the
information we could to help people acquire these CDs. Many are available
from musicians and merchants in the SCA, others are available commercially.

(Old and new recordings by SCA musicians for SCA dances, including
all dances discussed in the first few years of The Letter of Dance newsletter.
We use TOD4 for Verceppe, TOD3 for The Pinwheel, and all three when we
want to travel light. Highly recommended. Note that Tape of
Dance 1 has not been remastered onto CD; however, all tracks from this
volume appear on TOD2 and TOD3. Eric is currently compiling music
for TOD 5 projected for the middle of 2002.)

3. Accademia Viscontea I Musicanti:

Mesura Et Arte Del Danzare (Balli italiani del quatrocento)

Ducale CDL 002
(Probably our single most favorite 15th c. Italian CD. We use
this for Gioioso in Tré/Rostiboli Gioioso, Leoncello Vecchio, and
Petit Riens. Highly recommended, but currently hard to find)

4. New York Renaissance Band

Arbeau: Orchésography

Arabesque Z6514
(Looks like all of Arbeau, although Buffens, for instance, is way too
short. We use this for the basic Branle Suite, Candlestick Branle,
Peas Branle, Belle Qui Pavan and Galliard, and sometimes other Arbeau dances.
Highly recommended)

Country Capers

Arabesque Z6520
(A number of dances all from 1st edition Playford. We use this
for Fine Companion, Gathering Peascods, Heart's Ease, Jenny Pluck Pears,
a brisk Rufty Tufty, and Upon A Summer's Day.)

8. Ferrara Ensemble:

Forse Che Sí, Forse Che No (Musique de Danse du Quattrocento)

Fonti Musicali fmd 182
(We use this for Anello, and the Bazzadanza have strong tenors, but
some of the tracks have highly ornamented orchestrations that are very
hard to follow, and some of the arrangements do not match our recreations
of the dances. In addition, there is an annoyingly loud snare drum
on several tracks.)

9. Cumberland Collegium:

Why Not Dance?(Two 15th c. Italian dances, a branle, two Almans, Playford, and some
Out of Period dances. We use use this for Black Nagg.)

Also: La Maurache (Instruments médiévaux
et voix)

La Danse A La Cour des Ducs de Bourgogne

Arion ARN 68052
(We use this for Branle d'Ecosse. It also has Jouyssance Vous
Donnerai, a very slow Amoroso, a strange Branle Charlotte, and a nice La
Spagne plus songs and dances without extant choreographies.)

Bonus: Calliope

Dances (A Renaissance Revel)

Nonesuch 9 89039-2
(Galliards and a suite of 3 La Spagnas - our Lauro version, by Ebreo,
performed with a good tenor. We do not actually use this for practice,
but this is one of my old favorites and is recommended by M. Justin.)